I Can't Let You Go
by DaaNi-ChAn
Summary: //Following “Naruto: Shippūden” the movie's trailer\\ Sakura’s mourning her best friend, unable to walk away from his grave, unable to let him go. //Sakura x Naruto\\ ONESHOT . Please R&R!


Alright, just to begin with, I'm totally not a fan of this pairing. But after seeing the "Naruto: Shippūden" movie trailer, I realized that a story could be born out of it, complete with the "Everytime we touch, Yanou's candlelight mix" by Cascada. It was perfection, I cried while writing this. Maybe because I love the song and I was listening to it while writing this story.

**Disclaimer:** Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto and it's not by any means mine. And the song is not mine also. Only the story is mine because it's created in my head.

**Summary:** following "Naruto: Shippūden" the movie. Sakura's mourning her best friend, unable to walk away from his grave, unable to let him go. A Sakura x Naruto one-shot. Please R&R.

* * *

**I can't let you go… **

They were all there, standing around his grave. None of them believed they would lose one of them in a short period of time. Sakura was the last to arrive, walking with heavy steps towards his grave. Sai, Lee, Chouji, Neji, Tsunade, Shizune and Shikamaru were there, looking at Sakura, knowing that it would have the hardest effect on her the most.

"N-Naruto…" Sakura whispered, looking at his grave. The Konoha symbol was carved in the middle of the gravestone. She looked at the upper left side of it to see Naruto's torn forehead protector tied there. She took a couple of steps, standing in front of the grave. None of the others dared to say a word, knowing how hard this was on Sakura.

She looked at the grave; her breaths shortening and her heart pounding harder against her chest. Sakura looked at the others, expecting to see a reaction, someone to tell her that it's a joke, waiting for Naruto to jump out of nowhere and tell her that this is one of his silly pranks so she could punch him hard on the head and laugh about it later…

…but no one did, and the truth was told…

…Naruto was dead.

She looked at the grave; her eyes were filling up with tears. Her lips quivered as her tears strolled down her cheeks. Sakura fell to her knees, resting her hands on the ground, her hands balling into fists and she closed her eyes tightly.

"NARUTO!!" She screamed on top of her lungs, resting her forehead against the ground. The guys tried their best to hold back their tears yet the girls weren't as strong, their tears were let out.

_I still hear your voice when you sleep next to me  
I still feel your touch in my dream  
Forgive me my weakness but I don't know why  
Without you it's hard to survive…_

Sakura opened her eyes, breathing heavily. She felt her chest being torn into pieces; she couldn't comprehend the thought of him being gone. She first lost Sasuke, and now…

"…Naruto-kun…" she whispered, closing her eyes, and raised her head up, looking at the gravestone. His picture popped in her head, grinning foolishly at her. Sakura chuckled, before crying again. She raised her hand, touching the gravestone.

She remembered how he's been there for her all the time. How he always implied that he liked her, how he asked her out on the first dinner they had after he had come back from his training with Jiraiya.

It was after Kakashi sensei had given them the bell test for the second time in two and half years when Naruto decided he was hungry and wished to eat at Ichiraku Ramen restaurant.

They both ran far away from their sensei as he spoke to Jiraiya, a few seconds later, the latter disappeared.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura called him, making him look at the two. "We decided that you're treating us to ramen" Naruto yelled, "Hurry up, Hurry up!" Sakura yelled. Kakashi raised his right hand while holding the newest edition of Icha-Icha paradise in his left.

"Sorry, I have to make a list of the new teams and submit them, so I'm Outta here" he said, disappearing into a puff of smoke. Sakura frowned, "He ran away." Naruto said, "He said all that, but you know he's just going to read that book, probably." Sakura said, knowing her sensei's habits. Naruto bumped his right fist onto his left palm, an idea popping in his head.

"So that means..." he said, catching Sakura's attention, Naruto blushed, bumping his index fingers against each other, "Then, the two of us can go on a date―"

"That's fine, but you're paying!" she said, smiling and walking off.

She felt like such a jerk for acting that way towards him. Every moment she looked back, she knew that he deserved more than he was given from her. Sakura remembered when she met him a couple of months earlier while he was coming out of Tsunade-sama's office, looking blue. She remembered greeting him, but he didn't reply. Sakura asked him what was wrong. That's when he held her shoulders, giving her a frightening feeling, that's when he said the words she never expected to hear.

"Sakura-Chan, Sasuke is…dead"

Sakura gasped, her breath was caught in her throat. Naruto was looking at the ground, eyes closed and hands still on her shoulder. She took a step closer, burying her face in his chest as he embraced her, holding her close as she sobbed harder and harder every minute until she broke in tears, collapsing on the ground. Naruto kneeled with her, still holding her in his arms. They both lost their best friend, their team-mate, and the one they've vowed to save from his own self.

Sakura clutched his shirt, sobbing harder. Naruto didn't know how to calm her down, he was pretty devastated himself. He kissed her forehead and looked down at her, wiping away her tears.

"I-I'm sorry, Sakura-Chan. I swore to save him, but I failed, I failed him and I…" he said, looking at the ground. "…I failed you" he said, squeezing his eyes shut, his tears dropping to the ground. Sakura cupped his face, wiping away his tears as well.

"No, you've…we've done our best to save him" she said, leaning her forehead against his, sobbing. Naruto couldn't contain it anymore as he also burst into tears, making Sakura cry as well. She buried her face in his chest as he held her close, burying his face in her shoulder, both mourning their friend.

_Your arms are my castle; your heart is my sky.  
They wipe away tears that I cry. _

Not long after that, Naruto decided to cheer her up, seeing that she was mourning way too long over their friend. He went to her place, knocked on the door with a bag in his hand. Sakura answered the door, looked at Naruto and smiled sadly. Greeting him, she took a step aside to let him in. Naruto grinned and shook his head, instead of going in; he grabbed her hand and took her outside. He kept pulling her away, refusing to answer any question she asked.

A couple of minutes later, while the sun was setting, he took her to one of the highest places in Konoha. Sakura was startled by the whole situation, when Naruto sat down, looking up at her, telling her to join him. They both sat down, looking at the sunset. Naruto reached for the bag he brought and got out a small rectangular white box, looking at Sakura with a grin on his face.

Once he opened the box, he extended his hand in front of her. She chuckled when she realized it was only a box of rice. In the middle was a round, dark red sour-tasting pickle called Umeboshi, her favorite food.

"The best in Konoha!" he exclaimed, grinning. "I thought you wanted to share" he said, smiling at her. Sakura looked at him and smiled as he smiled back at her, closing his eyes before moving his vision towards the sunset, opening his eyes slowly. Then suddenly, Sakura leaned her head on his shoulder, holding his arm. Naruto was startled and tensed by her action, looking at her surprisingly. Soon, he relaxed and smiled, moving his vision back to the sunset. He then slowly moved his arm from her grip and draped it around her shoulder, pulling her closer, kissing the top of her head.

"Don't forget that I'm here with you, and I'm always by your side" he whispered, making Sakura gape for a minute. She realized that Naruto was serious, his tone was different and he sounded sincere. She smiled and nodded against his chest, closing her eyes. Both of them spent the rest of the night sitting there, talking, laughing and sharing the box of Umeboshi.

_The good and the bad times we've been through them all  
you make me rise when I fall… _

Sakura looked at his grave, sobbing. Their friends have been standing here for a quite long time. They all exchanged looks before looking at Sakura. Chouji was the first to walk away, kneeling next to Sakura.

"I'm sorry, Sakura" he said, patting her on the shoulder as he sat on the ground, looking at his grave. Chouji waited for a couple of seconds, nodded, patting her on the back again, and walked off, soon followed by the others. Tsunade and Shizune stayed a bit longer. None of them accepted the fact that Uzumaki Naruto was gone, forever…

A few minutes later, everyone was gone, leaving Sakura all alone in the graveyard, staring at Naruto grave.

Every time she looked at it, she remembered every single minute of the times they've spent together. She chuckled sadly once she remembered the time were they were playing hide and seek with Sai, their new team-member. Naruto, being as childish as ever, decided that since they didn't have a mission, they would train to hide their Chakura aura from the enemy by playing hide and seek, both Sai and Sakura agreeing with him.

Naruto chuckled as it was Sai's turn. As the latter turned his face away from them, counting till a hundred, Naruto laughed, pulling on Sakura's hand and pulling her along as he ran as fast as he can. Sakura laughed, trying to run as fast as her legs could go.

"Naruto, Slow down" she said in between laughter. Naruto then pulled her into a narrow alleyway, pulling her closer to his body, telling her that Sai's cheating and he's already looking for them, and he was right. A few seconds later, Sai came by, calling out their names to find them.

Once he passed by them, Naruto and Sakura both chuckled a bit too loud. Sakura looked at Naruto and shushed him, then paused, realizing how close their faces were. Naruto grinned and leaned closer, catching her lips with his. Sakura gasped before giving into it, her hands moving from his chest up to his cheeks. Naruto chuckled against her lips before moving his hands around her waist. She moved her hands to the back of his neck, interlocking her fingers with each other as she leaned closer, deepening the kiss. She parted her lips slightly, giving him the entrance, and he complied, his tongue moving along with hers in a synchronized rhythm. A couple of minutes later, they broke the kiss, panting and chuckling. Their hearts racing and pounding almost against each other as Naruto captured her lips again with his.

_Every time we touch, I get this feeling.  
And every time we kiss I swear I could fly.  
Can't you feel my heart beat fast? I want this to last!  
I need you by my side _

Sakura could remember the smile on Naruto's face that day. She could remember the shock on Sai's face when he saw them like that. They laughed when he faked that he was upset, walking off. Naruto ran after him, telling him that it was alright and getting the idea of 'both of them getting married and leaving him behind' he had in his head out of it.

Sakura sighed, still staring at the grave. It's funny how she never realized how important, dear and close he was to her. She remembered How close they've become before he went on that fateful mission, remembered how he told her that he was going and not to worry, remembered the bad feeling she'd felt when he walked away, remembered how he turned around, looking at her with that smile on his face, the smile that made her run to him and hug him tightly, the smile that made her look up and tip toe to kiss him, the smile he always had on his face every time they kissed.

Sakura looked up at the dark sky, the clouds started to gather. She closed her eyes as the rain dropped slowly at first before it poured. Sakura moved her vision back at the grave, sighing heavily. She didn't know what to do. Should she cry her heart out, or should she get up, walk away and move on with her life? Maybe she should lose her own life as well so she could join her friends. That thought made her cry even harder, burying her face in her hands and leaning forward on the ground.

A few seconds later, she heard footsteps behind her. Sakura raised her head, wishing it would be Naruto, praying it would be Naruto to tell her that he was sorry for making her feel like this and that he was glad that she'd react that way if he's gone one day, telling her that he was very happy that he meant so much to her. She turned her head to the side, looking at the person coming closer.

She sighed, turning her vision back at the grave, and closed her eyes once she noticed that it was Sai, holding an umbrella and walking closer to her. He kneeled next to her, holding the umbrella over both of them, telling her that she's going to catch a cold should she stay a bit longer. Sakura ignored him, not having the energy to move. She just wanted to stay here, with Naruto, the one who cared about her, the one who truly loved her. Sakura grimaced, her tears rolled down her cheek. Sai looked at her and narrowed his eyes sadly, moving his hand behind her back and rubbing it slowly, trying to calm her down while he moved his vision to the ground.

Sakura looked at her friend and told him she needed more time alone with him. Sai couldn't help but to accept, after all, she'd lose her best friend and she surely would want to stay with him till the end. He nodded and got up, leaving the umbrella with her. As he turned around, Sakura called him and held his hand, giving him the umbrella, not looking at him in the eye. He didn't know what she was trying to tell him, but he figured she'd not want the umbrella with her and he learned that once Sakura wanted something to be done, he had to accept.

He nodded and walked off, a couple of steps away from her, leaving Sakura in the rain. She kept her eyes glued to the gravestone, crying as the rain washed away her tears.

"…Didn't you promise me, Naruto-kun? Didn't you promise me that you'll be there for me no matter what?!" she said, almost yelling, forcing Sai to turn around and look at her, before turning around, giving her some privacy. Sakura sobbed, cried and collapsed on the ground.

"…weren't you the one who told me not to worry? Weren't you the one who kept telling me everything would be ok?" she whispered, between sobs. Her heart was almost beating out of her chest, so hard that it was almost beating against his grave, wishing he'd be hearing it. She wished he could feel her heartbeats, touch and wipe away her tears, and realize what a great influence he had on her.

She hated this, she hated the fact that he was gone, the fact that she won't be able to see his cheerful face, those stupid marks on his face and those big blue eyes as he talked about how he always wanted to become a Hokage, his electric touch whenever he held her hand, his heavenly kiss which always made her day.

_Every time we touch, I feel the static  
Every time we kiss, I reach for the sky  
can't you feel my heart beat so? I can't let you go!  
I want you in my life _

"You're not going to be with me anymore…" she said, caressing the gravestone, the Konoha carved symbol. She looked at his headband and reached for it. Sakura held it in her hands and touched the torn blue band, her fingers moving along the scratched metal part of it. She cried whenever she remembered that that particular forehead protector was on his head, on Uzumaki Naruto's forehead.

She took off her own, and put it on the grave. Naruto's forehead protector remained in her hands, close to her chest. Sakura closed her eyes, letting the rain wash away everything; the sorrow, the tears, the pain…the memories? No, Sakura opened her eyes, looking at the grave. She realized that he was gone, but only the memories would remain, the memories of them being always together, along with Sasuke, always the three-man team. Sakura smiled sadly as her tears poured out. She sobbed, getting up, Naruto's forehead protector still in hand.

"…I love you, Naruto-kun, I always did and I'll always do…" she said, closing her eyes and kissing his forehead protector. She grabbed the ends of the forehead protector and placed it on her forehead, tying the torn sash tightly on the back of her head. Once she made sure it was in place, Sakura looked at the grave before turning around.

She smiled sadly, seeing that Sai was looking at her with a sad yet caring expression on his face. He walked closer and held the umbrella over their heads, draping his left arm around her, telling her that she's surely getting a cold. As they both walked away, Sakura took one last look at Naruto's grave. A single tear moved down her cheek as she turned her head back, closing her eyes.

"I still need you in my life, by my side, Naruto…" she mumbled, walking away along with Sai, Realizing that nothing would bring him back, and that only the memories would keep him with her, keep the two of them together, keep his soul alive.

"…I can't let you go…I'll never let you go"

_Can't you feel my heart beat so? I can't let you go!  
I want you in my life _

* * *

**AHHH!! Runs off to cry **

**Sai****: appears out of nowhere Uh, first cameo in her stories, EVER. She doesn't even know me! But I think she likes me. Please review! **

**Update:**** This story has NOW a sequel which can be found on my profile. **


End file.
